Google reportedly plans to shake up Play Store subscriptions

Google may let Android developers keep more of the money from subscription sales from apps.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Apple isn't the only one making big changes to how it does business on its app store.

Google is testing a tweak to its Play Store, where people can find apps to download onto phones that run Google's Android mobile software. The change gives app makers a bigger cut of subscription sales, according to a report Wednesday by Recode.

Right now, app makers on the Play Store take home 70 percent of sales when consumers subscribe to their apps, but Google has been testing a new model where they take home 85 percent. The change could signal a big shift for how app makers charge people for their services.

The news comes the same day that Apple announced a similar change to its App Store for iPhones and iPads. There's one big difference: For Apple developers, the more-generous sales split kicks in only after a consumer has been subscribing to a service for more than a year. For Google, the new split would come immediately, according to Recode. It's unclear if or when Google would begin to institute the new plan.